Five IHC judges move Supreme Court against seniority list in aftermath of transfers
Pakistan
Justices Mohsin Kayani, Tariq Jahangiri, Babar Sattar, Ejaz Ishaq Khan, Saman Rafat file petition
ISLAMABAD (Dunya News) - A legal battle over the seniority of judges erupted in the Islamabad High Court, as five judges moved the Supreme Court against the seniority list.
The petition has been filed by Justices Mohsin Akhtar Kayani, Tariq Mahmood Jahangiri, Babar Sattar, Sardar Ejaz Ishaq Khan, and Saman Rafat Imtiaz, challenging the seniority.
Spanning 49 pages, the petition has been submitted under Article 184(3) through senior legal counsel Munir A. Malik and Barrister Salahuddin.
Also read: Six IHC judges write to SJC against 'interference' in judicial matters
The petition urges the Supreme Court to declare that the president does not hold unlimited authority under Article 200(1) to transfer judges between high courts without justifiable public interest. It asserts that such transfers should not be executed arbitrarily.
Further, the petition calls for suspending three transferred judges from their duties and requests that Justice Sarfraz Dogar be restrained from serving as the acting chief justice.
Earlier, the five judges had engaged the legal expertise of Munir A. Malik and Barrister Salahuddin to challenge the seniority decision.
It is pertinent to mention that former IHC CJ Aamer Farooq had previously dismissed the seniority representation of these five judges.
Their petition was initially filed in opposition to the decision that placed Justice Sarfraz Dogar as the senior puisne judge.
